Privileged activity threats

Improper or unchecked activity by users with privileged roles (DBSSO, AAO, DBSA, or OSA) can introduce security vulnerabilities and possible threats to the database server. HCL OneDB™ is carefully designed to give the DBSSO, AAO, and DBSA only the abilities required to do their jobs. Nevertheless, these roles and those of operating-system administrators, impart sufficient power that careless use of such power can result in breaches of security.

Database Server Administrator

The DBSA controls and monitors the database server and can configure role separation during database server installation. The countermeasure to a threat from the DBSA is independent scrutiny of the DBMS audit trail. The DBSSO can enable auditing of all DBSA actions, and the AAO can review DBSA actions in the audit trail.

Database System Security Officer

The DBSSO sets up DBMS audit masks for individual users. The countermeasure to a threat from the DBSSO is independent scrutiny of the DBMS audit trail because auditing DBSSO actions are enabled by the AAO.

Operating-System Administrator

A malicious OSA also poses a serious security threat because the OSA can violate the assumptions about the product environment and the methods that underpin its security functions. As with a DBSSO, the countermeasure to an OSA threat is independent scrutiny of the activities of the OSA, as recorded in the audit trail.

Audit Analysis Officer

The AAO reviews the DBMS audit trail. The countermeasure to this threat is to ensure that an AAO is authorized to view information that might be yielded when the database audit trail is reviewed. It is also important that the output of the onshowaudit utility be accessible only to an AAO and that manipulation of this output also be audited in the audit trail.